Luke 21:25-36; Matthew 25:31-46-Sunday’s
hymn of the day is The Day Is Surely
Drawing Near (LSB 508). Just
as the days are growing shorter so also time is counting down to the end of the
church year and the end of the world as we know it. This calls for vigilance,
patience, and faith. These themes and ideas are all communicated in this much
treasured hymn.
"The day is surely drawing near When Jesus, God's anointed, In all His
pow'r shall appear, As judge whom God appointed. Then fright shall banish idle
mirth, And flames on flames shall ravage earth, As Scripture long has warned us.”
"My Savior paid the debt I owe, And for my sin was smitten; Within the
Book of Life I know My name has now been written. I will not doubt, for I am
free, And Satan cannot threaten me, There is no condemnation!"
The last day! Children know
all about last days—the last day of school before summer or the last day before
the Christmas break. Adults, too, may eagerly count down the days (and hours)
until the last day of work before a long-anticipated vacation. Our hymn
celebrates a very different last day: the Last Day. The "day is surely
drawing near" when God will bring life on this earth—life as we know it
now—to an end, the day when Jesus, God's Anointed, will return to judge the
earth.
We do not always think of
Jesus as a Judge. In fact, we may view Him as very non-judgmental, perhaps not
in His interactions with the Pharisees and other opponents, but certainly with
the many people who received His compassionate forgiveness and healing. As
Scripture says, "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn
the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him" (John
3:17). Jesus came not to condemn, but to be condemned on behalf of the world,
to shoulder the burden of the world's sin and carry it to the cross.
But the Day of Judgment is
coming, and God the Father "has given all judgment to the Son" (John
5:22b). The apostle Paul explains that God "has fixed a day on which he
will judge the world in righteousness by a Man whom He has appointed; and of
this He has given assurance to all by raising Him from the dead" (Acts
17:31). Jesus, the appointed Judge, warned of signs that would alert us to the
nearness of that day—wars, earthquakes, persecution, false prophets, a darkened
sun and falling stars. On the Last Day, "fright shall banish idle
mirth." The day of Jesus' return will be a day of terror for many, but it
will be a day of joy—eternal joy—for all who believe in Him, because our Judge
is also our Redeemer, who took onto Himself our sin, guilt, and shame, and
clothed us in His righteousness.
For all who trust in Christ
Jesus, "there is therefore now no condemnation" (Romans 8:1a). Satan
can no longer accuse us before God. Our sins were judged and condemned at the
cross of Jesus and washed away in His blood. Our names are written in the Book
of Life. Today, on that Last Day and for all eternity we are held securely in
the hand of the coming Judge, the crucified and risen Son of God, our Savior
and our Shepherd.
THE PRAYER: Lord Jesus, You have promised that You are coming soon. We long for the day when we will see You face-to-face and live in Your presence forever. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! [2]
[1]
The Crucifixion, Schnorr Von Carolsfeld woodcuts © WELS permission granted for
personal and congregational use
ional use
[2] https://www.lhm.org/dailydevotions/default.asp?date=20191117
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